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Friday, May 29–Cops Kept Busy With Weapons Cases

OCEAN CITY – Over the course of a few hours late Sunday night and early Monday morning, resort police dealt with two serious cases of suspects brandishing weapons at groups of people in the downtown area.

The dicey stretch began around 10:40 p.m. on Sunday when Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) officers responded to the area of 9th Street and the Boardwalk in reference to a man threatening people with a gun. OCPD officers arrived in the area and met with several citizens who advised police a man, later identified as James Edward Mansfield, 21, of Hinesville, Ga., had been involved in an argument with a female acquaintance.

During the argument, Mansfield was reportedly confronted by several of the female’s friends who interceded on her behalf. At that point, Mansfield allegedly produced a loaded .40 caliber Glock handgun and pointed it at the group while on a public street.

The female victim called police from a cell phone and reported the incident as it was happening, according to police reports. Mansfield had left the scene, but his description was broadcast over the OCPD radio system and he was spotted a short time later in the area of 7th Street and Baltimore Ave. Mansfield was ultimately apprehended by officers at 6th Street and Wilmington Lane, but he had allegedly dropped the loaded .40 caliber pistol while fleeing the area. OCPD officers recovered the gun shortly after Mansfield was arrested.

Mansfield was charged with first- and second-degree assault, wearing and carrying a handgun on his person and reckless endangerment. He was taken before a District Court Commissioner and later released after posting a $10,000 bond.

Not long after OCPD apprehended and arrested Mansfield in the gun brandishing case, resort officers had another serious weapons case to resolve in the downtown area. Early Monday morning, OCPD officers arrested a Gaithersburg man on weapons charges after he allegedly pulled a knife on a group of people during an argument over favorite football teams.

Shortly after 2 a.m. on Monday, OCPD officers were dispatched to the Buckingham Motel on the Boardwalk for a report of a male threatening a group of people with a knife. Upon arrival, the officers observed a man, later identified as Marion Kenneth Allen, 45, of Gaithersburg, wielding a knife with the blade open toward a group of individuals including two males and three females sitting in rocking chairs on the front porch of the motel. The officer heard Allen yell, “I’ll cut you up,” as he waved the knife at the group, according to police reports.

The officer ordered Allen to get on the ground and the suspect complied, closing the knife and putting it back in his pocket before lying down on the ground with his arms extended. Allen was handcuffed and the knife was recovered from his pocket and secured.

The investigation revealed Allen was involved in a verbal altercation over football teams with the group about an hour earlier. One of the victims said Allen became enraged because he and the group disagreed about which football team they liked and told them he was going to “come back with a blade to show them what was up,” according to reports.

Allen returned about an hour later and the initial argument resumed. One of the male victims told Allen to leave because he was making the girls uncomfortable when Allen allegedly pulled out the knife and unfolded it. According to witnesses, Allen waved the knife at the group just about five feet away on the porch shouting, “I’ll cut your throat,” and “I’ll kill you,” according to police reports. The victims later told police they feared for their lives and believed Allen would have used the knife on them if the officers did not arrive when they did. Allen was charged with carrying a concealed deadly weapon with intent to injure.